In 1994, Akhil Bakshi led the Central Asia Expedition, comprising of Indian, Chinese and European scholars, on the Old Silk Road. The expedition drove 12,000 kms, in five Mahindra Armadas, across Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Chinese Turkestan and Tibet. In a charming and hilarious account of this remarkable journey, the audacious adventurer brings alive the excitement of Silk Road travel as he visits ageing caravanserais; witnesses a dumba fight; experiences the thrill of the Kazakh steppe; enjoys the wondrous beauty of Kirghiz lakes; chases double-humped camels in the foothills of the Tien Shans; races gyrating whirlwinds and explores Buddhist caves in Taklamakan and Gobi deserts; and rubs shoulders with yaks, nomads and monks in Tibet. The tempestuousness of the times is felt through the pulse of Timurlane, Chingiz Khan, Huen Tsang and Milarepa—who accompany the author through their old haunts. Silk Road On Wheels offers not only action and adventure, but also social and political insights revealing twenty centuries of the Silk Road.
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